In Classification and Determination of Constitution in Traditional Chinese Medicine, the China Association of Chinese Medicine classifies body constitutions of the human body into nine types, i.e., yin-yang harmony constitution, yang deficiency constitution, yin deficiency constitution, qi deficiency constitution, phlegm-dampness constitution, damp-heat constitution, qi stagnation constitution, blood stasis constitution and allergic constitution, most of which are sub-healthy states.
The qi deficiency constitution means that, when internal organs of the human body are dysfunctional and transformation and generation of qi are insufficient, manifestations of qi deficiency would easily occur, which are usually represented by faint low voice, emaciation of the body or overweight, pale complexion, shortness of breath and unwillingness to speak, lassitude, body fatigue and weakness, spontaneous perspiration which is especially more serious when in movement, pale red tongue with teeth prints and with white tongue coating, and weak pulse, diseases are caused due to various causes, different symptoms are seen due to the difference in qi-deficient parts such as heart, lung, spleen and kidney. The tendency of morbidity is: being susceptible to common cold and visceroptosis, usually having weakened immune systems and having slow recovery from illness. For this, qi tonifying and qi nourishing are taken as the general therapeutic principle, and prescriptions for tonifying viscera are selected on the basis of differentiation of diseases according to pathological changes of the viscera and their interrelations.
The qi deficiency constitution is formed mainly because native endowment is deficient and after long-term eating disorder, emotional disorder, long illness and fatigue, oldness and weakness cause heart, lung, spleen and kidney damages. Since heart governs blood and vessels, lung dominates qi throughout the body, kidney stores vigor, and spleen and stomach are “source of engendering transformation of qi”, the qi deficiency constitution will easily develop symptoms that the effect of promoting blood running is reduced, transformation and generation of qi in the body are insufficient, and the functions of the body in preventing the invasion of exogenous pathogenic factors, protecting the superficies of the body, and maintaining the positions of the internal organs are decreased.
Such sub-healthy constitution as qi deficiency constitution belongs to chronic diseases and has a relatively long disease course, and requires a long-term medication and gradual conditioning, in order to achieve the effects of tonifying qi and nourishing qi. The dosage forms commonly used in the traditional Chinese medicine are decoctions and Chinese patent medicine such as pills and the like. Decoctions usually have relatively good efficacy, but the administration thereof is complicated, and the taste thereof is poor, if the decoctions need to be administered for a long time, it is difficult for a patient to keep taking the decoctions. Moreover, the efficacy of the pills is relatively poor.
Food is the best product for human beings to prevent diseases and keep healthy. The theory that “medicine and food share a common origin” is one of the most valuable contributions made by the original Chinese medicine to human beings. It is described in the Rites of Zhou•OEfices of the Heaven•Medicine that “diseases are treated with the five flavors, the five grains and the five medicines”, which demonstrates the physical health-care functions of food. The method of regulating body functions using the characteristics of food so as to obtain health or prevent or treat diseases is called dietary therapy. However, “therapy” is inferior to “nourishing”, and food nourishing is an approach to increase resistance against diseases and enhance immunity by eating tonic food according to food nutritions in combination with the body conditions, so as to strengthen the body and prolong the life. It is described in Prescriptions Worth a Thousand Gold that “a physician should first know the cause of a disease to know why the disease is developed and treat the disease with food materials. Only when food materials are unable to treat the disease, can drugs be used.” Thus, dietary therapy was not only the basic therapeutic approach of the physicians at that time, but also an important criterion for determining whether a physician was a great physician.
It is mentioned in the Inner Canon of the Yellow Emperor that “the superior physician prevents illness, the mediocre physician attends to impending illness, and the inferior physician treats actual illness”, wherein the phrase “prevent illness” means taking corresponding measures to prevent the occurrence and development of diseases. The body constitution determines the health of people and determines the susceptibility to diseases. Faced with the situations that there are various diseases in modern society, the age of onset becomes lower and lower and there are more and more sub-healthy people, dietary therapy gets more and more popular with the consumers due to its advantages of being healthy and natural, and with respect to the diseases that are easy to develop, it is of great significance to develop a food product that has the functions of life nourishing and health protection, has a good taste and conditions the qi deficiency constitution, by using modern scientific technologies and methods and the theory that “medicine and food share a common origin”, referring to the precious Chinese traditional life nourishing experience in combination with good accumulation of the traditional Chinese medicine on the aspect of conditioning qi deficiency constitution.